Okay, so it turns out the World Cup wasn’t coming home. But that’s okay. We’ve got a new batch of bangers to get us through the weekend instead, with the latest instalment of our New Music Friday edit The Cut.
This week, we’ve got top pop picks from MØ and Sigrid, a new standard in indie banger from King Nun, the much anticipated return of Twenty One Pilots and an anti-Trump anthem to blast out loud from Honey Hahs. And that’s just scratching the surface.
So, without further delay, here are the new records you should be sticking in your carefully curated playlists today. You can hear the full thing on Spotify here, or, if you want to get the new cut every Friday direct to your Spotify account, follow the main playlist here.
Don’t forget to vote for your favourites in the Dork Buzz Chart. There’s a new rundown every Sunday at 5pm on Dork Radio. Get more info and the current top 10 here, and find a full list of every track you can vote for here.
MØ Sun In Our Eyes
The wait for a second full-length from top pop picker M̛Ø seems to have gone an eternity. Releasing a string of absolute bangers, and guesting on some of the biggest smashes of recent years, she’s been working the smart angles before delivering an album. ‘Forever Neverland’ is set to arrive later this year, with ‘Sun In Our Eyes’ making a gloriously seasonal appetiser.
King Nun Chinese Medicine
Oh blimey. When King Nun first gave the impression they were going away for a short while to level up, we smiled and nodded. Already one of the most exciting bands on Planet Indie, how much room was there to grow? On the strength of ‘Chinese Medicine’, it appears that the four piece didn’t just hit their ceiling, they knocked through ten stories to make a space big enough for a fucking dinosaur – one that’s now having a two minute and forty five second long temper tantrum. The new definition of the perfect indie banger.
Sigrid Schedules
The latest (and last) cut from Sigrid’s ‘Raw’ EP could well be the strongest. Sparky, peppy and packed with yelps, each fizzy bubble pops with a hair raising shock of electricity. “I think we’re a hit,” 2018’s most likely new pop queen proclaims. No shit, Sigrid.
Alessia Cara A Little More
The ‘acoustic gem’ is an increasingly underused play from the Big Pop Tactics Board, but it’s not one that Alessia Cara is going to ignore. ‘A Little More’ is every inch the intimate, close quarters gem. From the creaks of the guitar strings to the plush, velvet tones of her voice, it’s not a moment for the biggest stages, but a fireside delight.
Childish Gambino Summertime Magic
While ‘This Is America’ was built on anger and rebellion, ‘Summertime Magic’ sees Childish Gambino drifting on a vastly more chilled vibe. Sure, some of the vitriolic urgency is lost, but it’s replaced by a breezy bop that proves our Donald remains one of the most versatile, fearsome talents at whatever he turns his hand to.
Twenty One Pilots Jumpsuit
The Great Buzz Amnesty almost suffered a breakdown this week, as Twenty One Pilots announced their much anticipated return from hiatus at the exact same time the 1975 were hyping a brand new single. Still, when it comes down to airing that fresh material, at least alt. pop’s two biggest beasts have got their schedules in order. TOP returned with two new tracks. ‘Jumpsuit’ is, we reckon, the one blasting the way for what’s to follow. Threaded with the duo’s individual style – one that’s already started to warp the edges of mainstream music in their time away – it’s a genuine moment. If excitement alone is exciting, Twenty One Pilots are the party of the year.
Parcels Bemyself
Post World Cup disappointment, we’ll look for any port in a storm. Parcels’ high drifting vibe looks as good a docking point as any, riding a thermal drift to a utopian plane. So laid back it’s already popped its own cocktail umbrella and plopped in a slice of kiwi fruit, it’s more than happy to be itself. A positive message if ever there was one.
Swimming Girls Asking For It
Clocking in at just under three minutes, Swimming Girls are playing the pop gem game with pixel perfect planning. ‘Asking For It’ rises and falls, punches and ducks in all the right places, fizzing with shiny energy at every turn. A sly wink to the big leagues, their intentions are clear, their execution on point. They’re askin’, are you dancin’?
The Lemon Twigs If You Give Enough
The Lemon Twigs are a band with a vibe out of their time. In a playlist full of beats and bops, riffs and raucous refrains, their soaring, string laden offering feels almost an oddity, lifted from an animated world of happy bunny rabbits and singing birds. Crystal clear and punching through, it’s the palette cleanser to a menu full of intensely flavoured dishes.
Metric Dark Saturday
Metric are always at their fearsome best when they’re fighting from the shadows. ‘Dark Saturday’ has a heart as black as night, thumping hard, cut through with a chorus emblazoned with daggers of light. Effortlessly cool, there’s still nobody else that does it quite like the Canadian quartet.
Bad Sounds Couldn’t Give It Away
Such is Bad Sounds’ party vibe, even their songs about grief and coping can’t help but pack a chorus that lifts the soul. As the band drop into gear for a debut album due just over a month from now, they’ve already secured their own instantly recognisable sound. Now, they’re even working the word ‘mezzanine’ into a hook line. Is there anything they can’t do?
Blood Red Shoes Call Me Up Victoria
Blood Red Shows have come back different. Stomping loud, like a marching band straight out of a particularly regimented district of hell, there’s a darker edge to a band that already delved into the neon lit sleaze at will. A twisted parade into the night, it’s hard not to fall in line.
Gorillaz Humility (feat. George Benson) – Superorganism Remix
A meeting of musical minds between Gorillaz’ cartoon delight and Superorganism’s bubbling potential is so obvious, we’re slightly envious we didn’t come up with it ourselves. Plugging their disengaged euphoria directly into Damon Albarn’s pop mastermind, they magpie from both Gorillaz’ own back catologue and their own sonic toolbox, creating the perfect sticker book moment.
Honey Hahs – Stop Him
Yes, Honey Hahs remain impossibly young, but the three sisters don’t need (nor intend) to hang their hat on a lack of years when it comes to the big indie pop scrap. They don’t need to. From ‘Stop Him’’s opening ‘three, two, one, go!’, their command of melody, pace and sugary delight is so strong, they’d take down competition twice their vintage with worrying ease. That it’s allied to an anti-Trump anthem, finally dropped as the orange buffoon sets foot in the UK, feels like a genuine moment for a trio who are far, far more than just raw potential.
Gently Tender 2 Chords Good
The fact that Palma Violets left us with a quiet, almost unnoticed drift into the night rather than the big blow out they (and we) deserved might always tug at our big indie narratives, but the return of three quarters of the band in a brand new project eases the strain. With added Big Moon to boot, Gently Tender aren’t so much a super group as an evolution on a world its members helped create. With tinges of Jarvis Cocker married to gutter punk preaching and soaring South London vistas, it’s shiny, new and gloriously familiar, all at the same time. Whatever the name, it’s good to have them back.
Easy Life OJPL
It’s okay, Easy Life. We’re ignoring the fact you accidentally released the lead track from your new single ‘Frank’ last Friday, then sneaked it down before most of us were out of bed. We’re barely even mentioning it. Mostly, if we’re honest, because it’s other half – titled ‘OJPL’ – is so bloody good. Continuing the band’s pitch perfect early movements, once they work out how Spotify release windows work, it’ll be theirs for the taking.
Want all of these bangers in one place? We’ve got a playlist for that. Here’s this week’s selections on Spotify. If you want to get the updated version direct to your Spotify profile every Friday, follow the The Cut here.
Words: Stephen Ackroyd
Twenty One Pilots Jumpsuit
The Great Buzz Amnesty almost suffered a breakdown this week, as Twenty One Pilots announced their much anticipated return from hiatus at the exact same time the 1975 were hyping a brand new single. Still, when it comes down to airing that fresh material, at least alt. pop’s two biggest beasts have got their schedules in order. TOP returned with two new tracks. ‘Jumpsuit’ is, we reckon, the one blasting the way for what’s to follow. Threaded with the duo’s individual style – one that’s already started to warp the edges of mainstream music in their time away – it’s a genuine moment. If excitement alone is exciting, Twenty One Pilots are the party of the year.
